THE ALOGICALITY OF TITHE & TITHING {10%} – Shalom Daniel

It’s apparent that lately there have been imbroglios and arguments with regards to tithe.The reason behind this might be due to what preachers have said about it over time and hitherto.I really think some things need to be well spelt out.

It is not so good that preachers have been using Malachi 3:8-12 to wheedle people to give;“8 “Will a man rob God?Yet you have robbed Me!But you say,‘In what way have we robbed You?’In tithes and offerings.9 You are cursed with a curse,For you have robbed Me,Even this whole nation.10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,That there may be food in My house,And try Me now in this,”Says the Lord of hosts,“If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessingThat there will not be room enough to receive it.11 “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes,So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground,Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,”Says the Lord of hosts;12 “And all nations will call you blessed,For you will be a delightful land,”Says the Lord of hosts.”

It’s been preached that IF YOU DON’T PAY YOUR TITHE THINGS WILL BE TIGHT FOR YOU!So, people pay the 10% of their income expecting a magic in return, like MMM.God is not a magician!You see, most people pay this 10% expecting multiplication as though God is a money-doubler. They do not give out their love for God or His kingdom.God loves and wants a cheerful giver, not someone who gives grudgingly.

Another point is that most people give this 10% religiously, like ‘GOD, I’VE GIVEN YOU YOUR 10% O, LET ME NOW ENJOY MY 90%!’In fact, some might go to the extent of using a calculating machine just to arrive at that exact 10%,not willing nor ready to give beyond that, they’ll be like “Is it not 10% we are asked to give? No more,no less!”

It is also important to note that the 10%(Tithe) ought not to be construed as PASTORS’ FOOD; certainly not!We are no longer in the levitical order. There are no levites nor are there priests who are to help us asses God.1. The veil of the temple had been torn at Jesus’ death (Luke 23:45)2. We are now Royal Priesthood (1 Peter 2:9)3. There is no more temple. We are the temple of God (1 Cor. 3:16, 1Cor. 6:19)4. Jesus didn’t collect tithe nor did any of the apostles.Jesus had a job. He was a carpenter, yet he was into ministry (Mark 6:3)Apostle Paul also was into ministry, yet he had a job; He was a tentmaker(Acts 18:1-3)Therefore, there is no rationale behind someone in ministry not having a job that fetches him/her money for subsistence.

Moreover, have you ever come across ANOTHER KIND OF TITHE?Yes, there is, it’s in Deuteronomy 14: 22-29

“22 “You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. 23 And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always. 24 But if the journey is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, or if the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, when the Lord your God has blessed you, 25 then you shall exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. 26 And you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household. 27 You shall not forsake the Levite who is within your gates, for he has no part nor inheritance with you.28 “At the end of every third year you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates. 29 And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.”

According to this part of the scripture, we are meant to eat the 10% of our income.If preachers want to preach tithe then this other tithe should not be left out, and they must preach also that we should keep all the laws in the old testament, among which is the one that we should not wear clothes of different fabrics(Jeans and Cotton material and the likes), which most of us actually wear.

The point of fact is that, if you break a part of the law, then you’ve broken all.“For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” James 2:10.You can’t keep a part and leave the rest.But, the question is that, “Can one actually keep the whole law?”Now, this does not mean we should live lawlessly or carelessly.Remember, Jesus said that he didn’t come to abolish the law, rather he came to fulfill it(Matt. 5:17).The only way we can fulfill it is by living by the law of the Spirit of life in Christ(Rom. 8:2).

Furthermore, it is interesting to note that, THE ACTUAL CULTURE THAT GOD WANTS TO IMBIBE IN US IS THAT OF GIVING.The people of old testament couldn’t do it by the law, because the lived religiously, not by the Spirit.Do you think giving now looms easier?Well, it’s both YES and NO.The point is that, if preachers really preach THE GOSPEL that really touches and transforms people’s hearts, they won’t find it hard to give at all.Jesus said that the kingdom of God is like someone who finds a treasure hidden in a land, he goes to sell all he has just to buy the land.Check Acts 4:32-37, people sold their lands and belongings and brought the money to the apostles’ feet and THEY DISTRIBUTED TO EACH AS ANYONE HAD NEED! This is how church ought to be. There ought to be no disparity nor classes amongst us in the church.

Those who keep shouting, agitating and advocating that WE ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW,BUT UNDER GRACE do not seem to really understand what they are saying. Grace is not a license to be lawless, it is the ability to easily fulfill the law.In the old testament God demanded just 10%, now in the new testament what is demand of you is your 100%, even up to your life.Oh, so you were thinking that the new testament was a shortcut?Absolutely not!If you truly love God, giving will be your lifestyle.A man of God narrated the story of a man who thought it unwise to be giving God 10% and him keeping 90%. He therefore increased his tithe to 20%,30%… and now he gives up to 90% to God and even the 10% he keeps for himself is still in BILLIONS OF DOLLARS.Note that this does not imply that God is a magician or money-doubler.Your motive or intention for giving matters a lot.Like my brother Ayodele Brown Akande Hrma has rightly put, I think those who are having issues with tithe and tithing actually have a fundamental problem with giving.

In conclusion, I love what pastor Nathaniel Bassey said on this issue:“Whether Old or New Testament o, or whether under the law or under Grace o. COUNT ME IN. I love this God too much to argue about one small fraction of what he has blessed me with. When He sent His ONLY SON to die for me, He didn’t argue about it.His wasn’t even 10%. It was 100%. He gave everything for a once bloody sinner like me so I can be called His Saint.”

I see TITHE as a way to apportion the money that comes into the church to certain needs in the church.Money is needed in the church.Remember, it was some people’s money that was used to buy that chair you sat on the first day you entered church.How about maintenance of the church’s facilities and affairs?Money is needed!God demands more than your 10%.He demands your 100%.He demands your life.Love Him.Live for Him.